Pro-Russian propagandists are intensifying efforts to discredit the upcoming Paris Summer Olympics and erode Western support for Ukraine through a series of
audacious stunts, according to private experts and Western officials.
The tactics include using artificial intelligence to mimic Tom Cruise's voice in a fake documentary attacking the International Olympic Committee (IOC) and placing coffins inscribed with messages about the Ukraine war near the Eiffel Tower, sources told CNN.
This activity appears to be a desperate move by Russian operatives to tarnish the Olympics and thwart Ukraine's use of Western-made weapons against Russian territory. The IOC has restricted Russian athletes' participation in the Paris Olympics due to Russia’s ongoing war with Ukraine.
"There is a mix of desperation and opportunism to the recent spate of propaganda," said Gavin Wilde, a former Russia expert at the National Security Council. "For tech-savvy propagandists in Russia, the alternative they’re hedging against isn’t irrelevance—it’s a one-way trip to the front lines," Wilde told CNN.
The Russian embassy in France dismissed the allegations as “Russophobic,” asserting that Russia does not interfere in France's internal affairs and has more pressing priorities.
Undermining the West
The operatives employed a fake Cruise voice, the Netflix logo, and a bogus New York Times review to lend legitimacy to the documentary, according to Microsoft analysts. Released on Telegram last year, the video marked the beginning of an extensive campaign to smear the Paris Olympics, Microsoft reported.
Russian propagandists also fabricated news stories about Parisians buying property insurance due to terrorism fears and issued fake press releases purportedly from the CIA and French intelligence warning of terrorist threats.
On Saturday, French police found five coffins draped in French flags near the Eiffel Tower, labeled “French soldiers in Ukraine.” A French military official suspects Russian involvement, and police are questioning three men in connection with the incident.
French President Emmanuel Macron's ambiguous stance on sending French troops to Ukraine has angered the Russian government.
Deepfake Tactics
Pro-Russian social media accounts recently shared a doctored video of US State Department spokesperson Matthew Miller discussing Ukraine's use of US-made weapons in Russia. The video appears to combine footage from different press appearances, showing Miller in different ties.
While the source of the video remains unidentified, US officials and experts warn of the increasing use of AI-manipulated media in disinformation campaigns.
“The video is obviously fake,” the State Department said. “But it highlights the growing threat of AI-enhanced foreign disinformation operations.”
Historical Tensions
Russia’s antagonism toward the IOC has been ongoing. The IOC has barred Russian athletes from officially competing under the Russian flag in Paris due to the Kremlin’s invasion of Ukraine in 2022. Similar restrictions have been placed in past Olympics due to Russia’s alleged doping program.
Russia's GRU military intelligence agency was behind a cyberattack on the 2018 Winter Olympics opening ceremony in South Korea, according to the US Justice Department. With the geopolitical situation now more strained, officials are preparing for potential cyber threats to the Paris Olympics next month.
"The Paris Olympics will be an incredibly enticing target for these actors," said John Hultquist, chief analyst at Google-owned cybersecurity firm Mandiant. "Any attack will be designed to undermine French prestige and the solidarity at the heart of the event." Photo by Frankie Fouganthin, Wikimedia commons.